Broke my ankle 4 weeks ago and have been told to take surgical boot off and try walking on it.
Posted , 4 users are following.
i broke my ankle 4 weeks ago and have been told by the fracture clinic to take my surgical boot off and start walking on it. I have done so but it is painful and swells up but I can do it. My main worry is that if the bone has not healed properly, am i doing it more harm than good? I had an xray 2 weeks ago and it was healing as expected. I am 60 years old. My question is will it take longer to heal if I keep putting weight on it if it has not fully knitted together or could it not heal properly. Thanks in advance.
0 likes, 4 replies
AlexandriaGizmo pauline_1313
Posted
I think they mean you to start exercising it gradually not get out doing loads of walking just building muscles back up
It all depends where the fracture was and how bad, whether it was a clean break, good news it's healing though
devsmom pauline_1313
Posted
Hi Pauline, I don't think that the clinic wanted you to take the boot off and throw it out. I think that they wanted you to gradually begin walking without the boot. If the bone was not healing correctly they would not have told you trying to walk without the boot. So don't worry. It is healing properly. Do you have a crutch or a cane?Gradually put pressure on that ankle and try to walk a little with some kind of support. You will probably get swelling. If so sit down and put you foot up higher than your waist. You are going to have some pain or discomfort but if you take it slowly all should be well. I believe that I heard that putting weight on a break actually helps the healing process more so than not doing so. But do it slowly. No jumping jacks okay? Keep us up to date on your progress. Dev's mom.
freddy41742 pauline_1313
Posted
Hi Pauline,
A said by Alexandria and Devsmom gentle exercise is a good thing but just gentle walking. Assuming you had crutches initially you could just move to one.
I broke my ankle about 2 years ago after getting hit by a tree (not a good day 😦 ) but was quite bad as broke in 3 places and needed screws and plates. I had a lot of swelling and occasionally still have a bit. Due to quite severe anxiety I worried a lot about it re-breaking and so when told to walk even with the boot initially I couldn't and it took an excellent physio to give me the push I needed (just by telling me to walk obviously not a push that would be cruel 😉 ). It was painful and I had lots of swelling but as I was told that it was seriously needed because of the way the foot works and the muscles when walking gets the blood moving and is actually needed for recovery. There is also the re-building of muscles so you may find it stiff but initially aswell.
Glad to hear your recovering though and hope it continues to improve every day!!
Keep us updated on progress.
pauline_1313
Posted
Thank you for your replies and thanks for the laugh freddy41742. The thought of a physio actually giving you a push made me giggle. I am being very sensible about it and doing everything i have been told, only walking short distances around the house and then propping my leg up with cushions and wearing the boot still outside. I just couldn't get it out of my head that i shouldn't be putting weight on it after only 4 weeks but i think it was a clean break so maybe that makes the difference. Your comments have reassured me though. Thank you.